The presentation of Robert Kocharyan’s autobiography, ‘Life and Freedom,’ was held at the Congress hotel. The Vice President of the Republican Party, Armen Ashotyan, was also present.
Ashotyan told Aravot Daily, “Today’s event would not have been any less important if the second President Robert Kocharyan was not illegally and unconstitutionally being persecuted. We as a society know our old history better than we know our new history. This seems to be a paradox that probably has its objective reasons because our new history continues; we have created that together. We are more accustomed to appreciating what we had in the past than what we have now. Perhaps there are things we can’t talk about. But the origins of our new history are just as important. We have to know who created our history. And the Armenian version of ‘Life and Freedom’ will allow us to learn about the opinions, perspectives, and stories of the first President of Artsakh and the second President of Armenia. I read the Russian version of the book. It would be great if Levon Ter-Petrossian and Serzh Sargsyan could write such a book too. There is a misunderstanding that memoirs are only written when the past and the present no longer have any connection to one another. I do not think that books written by Robert Kocharyan, Serzh Sargsyan, and Levon Ter-Petrossian should be considered memoirs. They are not memories for people who do not have connections to the past and the present. The political processes in Armenia show that Robert Kocharyan has become, perhaps unwillingly, one of the most serious influences in politics. I hope that for the next presentation, whether that will be in English, French, or another language, Robert Kocharyan will be present.”
Ashot Hakobyan
